This
era of Spider-Man is equal parts nostalgia and passion for me. I had
issues 195 and 196 when they were the current issues and had all of
these as cheap-o back issues in the mid-80s I still got a huge kick
out of reading them as an adult. Marv Wolfman wrote things in a way
that I could enjoy them as 5-going-on-6 year old and as a 40 year
old. This is something of a lost art. Nowadays everything is an
either/or scenario.

The
artwork is done by several Bronze Age journeymen and is equally
strong throughout. The Black Cat is introduced in a two-part story
(#194 and 195), and there is a long arc building up to issue 200. The
main difference between arcs in '70s comics and arcs now is that
other things happened on the way to the climax of the main arc. So
while things were unfolding, we still had time for two
arcs-within-arcs, the first featuring the return of the Kingpin
(196-197) with the second having the return (resurrection?) of
Mysterio. All of which leads up the climax in issue 200 which
features the return of the Burglar who murdered Peter Parker's Uncle
Ben way back in Spider-Man's first appearance in Amazing Fantasy
#15.

I
read this to my seven year old son and he also loved it. It's a shame
that I can't share modern superhero comics with him.

Junk
Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The
OCD zone- The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic Hardcovers
were a sort of junior Masterworks line. While they weren't quite the
“Blu-Ray” version of these issues like you would see in a Marvel
Masterwork, they are still excellent.

DVD-style
Extras included in this book: Letter page
from #194 (1 page).

Entry
on the Black Cat from The Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe
Deluxe Edition #2 (1985) (2 pages).

Entry
on the Burglar from The Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe
A-Z Vol. 2 Premiere HC (2011) (1 page).

Fully
rendered version of the front and back dustjacket covers (#200,
front, and #194, back) minus trade dress (2 pages).

Linework
and Color restoration rating: 4.5 out of 5. While the color
palette is faithful to the original publications, there are spots
where the linework is not as crisp as it could be. I am certain that
this material will be remastered in “high def” once the Marvel
Masterworks line reaches this era in a few more years.